One of the special features of Atomic Heart is the fact that the title takes place in an alternative Soviet Union. In this story, although the Nazis were defeated earlier, millions of people also fell victim to a “brown plague”. The international community then had to resort to Soviet robots because humanity was so decimated. But it is controlled by an AI and what will AIs do sooner or later in games? Right, they’re freaking out.
Protest at Sony, Microsoft and Valve
There have already been several voices about the history of Atomic Heart that the Soviet regime is glorified a bit here, but that’s not the only reason why the game is not well received in Ukraine at the moment. Because Ukraine has noisy Dev.ua announced (translation per DeepL) that an official letter will be sent to Sony, Microsoft and Valve “requesting a complete ban on the sale of digital versions of the game in Ukraine.”
The Russian developer Mundfish is at the center of the debate: It is accused of not distancing itself from the Russian attack on Ukraine and of having direct contacts with the Russian state and the Putin regime. Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine Oleksandr Boryakov said: “We demand to restrict the distribution of this game also in other countries because it is toxic, potentially collects user data and can share it with third parties in Russia. The money that Earned by purchasing the game could also be used to wage war against Ukraine.”
According to the Ukrainian government representative, media reports say the game was developed with money that came from sanctioned Russian companies (Gazprom is specifically mentioned here) and banks and is systemically important for the Russian government. Boryakov also calls on Western players to ignore Atomic Heart because the game “romanticizes communist ideology, the Soviet Union and the KGB.”
- Atomic Heart has received a lot of praise, but there has also been criticism.
- The game is played in an alternative Soviet Union.
- Ukraine demands to ban sales.
- Developer has contacts with the Putin regime and collects user data.
- Money for development came from sanctioned Russian companies.
- Game romanticizes communist ideology, Soviet Union and KGB.
- Western players are encouraged to ignore Atomic Heart.
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